Loyalties
by Blaire Nightshade
Summary: "I wanted to come back for you," Daryl told her, "after the farm went down." Andrea becomes conflicted after seeing Daryl as Woodbury's latest prisoner. She is torn between her redneck friend and her current allegiance with Woodbury and the Governor. Takes place immediately after 'Made to Suffer'.
1. Reunion

**Hey guys! After watching the latest episode of TWD, this little story played out in my head after seeing Andrea's reaction to Daryl at the end. Now Daryl is by far my favorite character...he's badass, sexy, and of course portrayed by Norman Reedus. I can just see him spilling all of the beans to Andrea about the Governor's extracurricular activites that go on behind closed doors. Now as for Andrea, it's complicated. I go from hating her...to really liking her...to hating her again. So this is a way I thought she could redeem herself. ****PRISON BREAK WITH DARYL DIXON! **

**Now before season 3 kicked off, i shipped Andrea and Daryl. Still do sort of, but she has some shit to get together. Like not sleeping with anyone who is the season's antagonist. So if this evolves into anything beyond a one-shot, that may be incorporated. But until then...enjoy.**

**I do not own the Walking Dead.**

* * *

"I want to talk to him," Andrea demanded as she stood outside the interrogation room.

Shupert the bowman did nothing but shake his head as he stood firmly planted between her and the Woodbury prisoner.

Andrea looked at him suspiciously before turning on her heel and leaving the compound. Phillip had some serious explaining to do…especially after the stunt he pulled tonight.

The events of the arena still played in her mind, over and over again like a broken record.

….

'_TERRORIST!" She had heard the Governor shout to the crowd who roared on like bloodthirsty savages. Then she saw the bag get pulled over the prisoner's head and her lungs failed her._

_Daryl_

_Her former friend…no, still her friend._

_Terrorist…terrorist…terrorist!_

_Sure the redneck was a little hot tempered and impulsive…but terrorist?! _

_Before she knew it Merle and his brother were pitted against one another in the arena. Live walkers thrown in to the pit without chains (and she was pretty damn sure those things had teeth). What happened next surprised her…Daryl and Merle weren't fighting each other, but rather they had each other's backs and were holding the walkers off. She watched as Merle used his stub to knock one to the ground and Daryl smashed its head in with his boot._

_Even after all the brothers had been through, the Dixon's still would always watch each other's back. Funny how siblings would do that for each other, she and Amy once had the same connection._

_She watched the last walker fall and snuck a glance at the governor. He nodded to three of his men; two of them restrained Merle while the third forced Daryl to his knees. She watched anxiously as the Governor walked up to Daryl and pulled out his gun._

_Oh God no_

_He put the gun to Daryl's skull. All noise stopped, she couldn't even hear the screams coming from Merle's mouth as she watched on._

_Andrea rose up quickly driven by a need to save Daryl. She couldn't let him be executed, not like this…she needed to talk to him…too late._

_The governor pulled the trigger….but no shot rang. He fired on an empty round._

_Daryl's eyes didn't even flinch from the Governor's warning shot…he looked up at him with nothing but pure rage behind those hazel eyes. _

_The governor then drew his hand back and pistol whipped Daryl square on the nose. Daryl fell sideways spitting blood as he went down. _

_Andrea watched on as Daryl sat back up and spat blood out of his mouth._

"_Take him away!" he shouted turning to Merle, "this one two,"_

_She hopped off the bleachers and followed the men and Daryl as far as she could before the Governor intercepted her._

"_I'm sorry you had to see that…"_

…_._

Andrea walked down the streets of Woodbury contemplating exactly how she was going to talk to Daryl. Obviously the Governor didn't want her talking to him.

She still couldn't believe it. Daryl was alive, who else had made it this far? Rick, Hershel, Carl?

She shook her head, all that had happened was too much to process and she was getting a migraine. She paused and sat down on one of the benches to gather her thoughts.

A few minutes later she saw Haley exiting a building and heading to the bunker.

She was switching shifts with Bowman. This was her chance. Haley was gullible, and easy to manipulate.

Andrea waited about 5 minutes, and watched as Bowman came out of the Bunker and headed inside one of the buildings, presumably his house. She then briskly walked to the compound, and towards Daryl. She saw Haley standing guard. 'Here goes nothing'.

"Hey," Andrea greeted Haley who was sitting on a stool outside of Daryl's room.

Haley nodded.

"Ummm, I just talked to the Governor…he needs you to go take up post at the wall. Some biters were gathered near the west gate and they need taken out."

"I just started my shift, why didn't he tell me ten minutes ago, before I got here?"

Andrea shrugged, "just showed up I guess."

Haley nodded before standing up. "I'll take care of it. I'm gonna try out that assholes crossbow. Thing looks badass."

Andrea watched Haley turn the corner and heard a faint door slam. She turned around and walked into the interrogation room.

Daryl had his head down and his dirty locks of hair were falling over his face. His hands were cuffed behind his back which made him look extremely uncomfortable.

"Daryl?" she asked perking him out of his stupor.

"Andrea?" he whispered in disbelief as he squinted his eyes at her. He had a deep gash on his nose, and blood was dripping down his face. He cursed under his breath. "You're one of 'em?"

"I showed up a few weeks ago, after running for months. I came across this place and decided to stay" she explained sitting in the chair opposite of him, "what's going on? How did you get here?"

"Why don't you ask your fearless leader that?" He shrugged pausing to spit blood out of his mouth. "Bastard broke my nose."

"Help me understand, please?"

"He kidnapped Glenn and Maggie. Rick and I came here to get 'em back. I held back so the rest of them could make it out." He explained.

Andrea nodded and Daryl continued, "Did you know he almost raped Maggie…forced her to strip in front of him. All so he could find out where the rest of the group was held up. And now that he knows, he's going to go there and kill every last one of 'em."

Andrea couldn't take anymore and stood up quickly almost knocking the chair down.

How could he do that to her? How could she have done what she did with him? He seemed so sweet, so caring. And according to Daryl that was all a lie. He was a liar and a murderer.

Daryl must be confused, he had to be.

But she knows Daryl; he has no reason to lie. He never had. The Governor was quick to label him as the villain, but no…Daryl wasn't the bad guy here, far from it.

"I wanted to come back for you," he whispered almost inaudibly.

"What?" she asked in shock.

"After the farm went down…I wanted to come back for you." He told her sincerely.

It was then Andrea realized what she had to do. She turned back to Daryl.

"I'm going to get you out of here," she told him before heading to the door, "and I'm coming with you."

* * *

**I know it's a little choppy, but let me know your thoughts. Hit me up with a review, let me know if i should continue. **

**~Blaire**


	2. Get Out Alive!

**Hi everyone.**

**Great turnout for the first chapter...so i've decided to continue it. I already have 5 chapters written, and I'll be posting one everyother day about, i'll probably post more frequently once finals are over.**

**Thank you for everyone who reviewed, it means the world to me...you guys are the best.**

** I hope this chapter's not to confusing, _italics_ are flashbacks/in the past. Here we go**

* * *

The Governor stood in the center of the arena and watched as the last rays of sunlight disappeared over the horizon. He smiled to himself before turning to the audience.

"Friends! The time has come. The time for our enemies to meet their reckoning. They came here hoping that they would tear us down and take our land. But NO! We rose above them and triumphed! And now it is time for them to come to terms with that. It is time for them to face their demise."

The Governor smirked as he heard the crowd chant 'death' over and over again.

"Bring me the brothers," he told Caesar, "and the younger one goes first. I want Merle to watch it."

Caesar nodded as he headed out with two other men. The Governor then turned to Haley, "Go get Andrea from her room, she needs to see this."

"okay," Haley nodded and heaed off.

* * *

Caesar and company approached the bunker and he signaled for the other two to get Merle. He unlocked Daryl's cell door, but when he opened it he saw Andrea in the chair. She had a busted lip and her hair was messy and falling out of her ponytail.

"He's behind you!" she said scared as he walked forward to get her out of the chair. Caesar turned quickly to see Daryl with a gun in his hand. He felt the butt of the pistol strike him in the face before he fell to the ground unconscious. Daryl reached down and shoved a spare cloth into his mouth. He dragged Caesar over to the corner and handcuffed him to a pipe.

Daryl pulled out his gun and turned to Andrea. He strutted over and yanked Andrea up out of the chair by the arm. "Let's go."

* * *

Haley started rushing back to the Arena to talk to the Governor.

"What?"

"Andrea's not in her room."

"Well, where the hell is she?" the Governor demanded.

Haley shrugged, "I don't know."

"Well go find her!" Haley nodded before running off again.

"Problem?" Shupert asked.

"Andrea's missing," the Governor told him, "We need to find her…**now**!"

Just as he said that Daryl appeared in the street holding Andrea at gunpoint.

"Freeze!" the Governor shouted as he pointed his gun in Daryl's direction

"Back up!" Daryl screamed as he shielded himself behind Andrea. He had her in a headlock and had her own gun placed at her temple.

"Damn you Daryl, I trusted you!" She seethed from below.

"Shut up!" he yelled grabbing the back of her neck and forcing her down lower. As her head was pointed straight down, she had no idea where she was being led to and she tripped with every other step taken.

"You best let me leave," Daryl warned, "or Blondie here gets a round in her skull."

"He's bluffing," Shupert directed to the governor.

"You willing to find out?" Daryl raised an eyebrow at the Governor.

The two stared at each other for what seemed like hours before Daryl cocked the gun emphasizing his point.

"Stop," the Governor finally spoke up as he put his hands out in surrender. "Just don't hurt her."

"Open that gate," he nodded his head to the doors. "Once we're clear, and I know that I won't be followed…I'll let her go."

* * *

_The day before..._

_Andrea just nodded to Daryl as she closed the metal door behind her. She smiled slightly to herself. He had come back for her…or at least had wanted to. Hell that had to count for something._

_She was slightly stunned by that fact. She and Daryl didn't exactly see eye-to-eye. He was a rash, impulsive, southern redneck that didn't get along with anyone. So above all the others…__**he **__wanted to come back._

_She was still trying to process the other little revelation she had. The one where her 'friend' the Governor had molested Maggie. Maggie…tomboy, farm girl, Glenn's girlfriend Maggie. What kind of animal would do that? _

_Suddenly Andrea felt disgusted with herself. She had trusted him, had made love to him. She chose him over Michonne. Michonne had been the closest thing to a friend she had had these past few months. And when she came back last night, standing with her sword to his head…she realized that Michonne had reason to kill him. _

_After about 30 minutes Haley came back. "Only one biter, others must have roamed off __thanks for taking over, I got it from here."_

"_Take care."_

* * *

_Andrea walked into her room to see the Governor sitting in a chair by the corner. _

"_Where did you run off to?" he asked._

"_After everything that happened earlier, I needed to step out to clear my head."_

"_This is about Merle's brother," he realized._

"_I spent three months with the guy; it's just hard to believe he would do this." She lied._

"_It's never easy to be hurt by those closest to you," he said standing up and embracing her in a hug. Andrea cringed slightly at the gesture._

"_Thankfully he won't be a problem for much longer," he assured stroking her cheek._

"_What does that mean?" Andrea asked._

"_He's to be executed at sundown tomorrow," he told her._

_Andrea tried her best to hide the fear that lit up inside of her. She was worried if she tried to dissuade the Governor he would just do it sooner. And if he was as ruthless as Daryl let on, he wouldn't hesitate._

"_It's for the best," Andrea smiled._

_The Governor smiled back and leaned in and gently kissed Andrea._

_Andrea waited for the Governor to leave her room, when she heard the door close she jolted to the bathroom and threw up in the sink. She breathed heavily, attempting to calm herself down before washing off her face. If she was going to get Daryl out of here alive she had to keep it together. _

_She had less than 24 hours to devise a plan that wouldn't get them both killed. And failure was not an option. _

_Daryl had wanted to save her, and now it was time for her to return the favor._

* * *

_Daryl felt his head get thrown to the side as another fist made contact with his face. _

"_Son of a Bitch!" he cursed shaking off the pain._

"_You're stronger than you look," The Governor confessed, "I believe I have underestimated you."_

"_Wouldn't be the first time," Daryl shot back._

"_Need to do something about that mouth of yours though," _

"_Can you pluck out my ears while you're at it…tired of listening to your pansy ass voice."_

_The Governor smirked before leaning forward and putting his hands on the table, "egging me on won't make your death come any quicker. Believe me, you will die today…but when I give the word. And that won't be until I pluck every single scrap of information out of your pathetic head." _

"_Well then you best get started,"_

* * *

_Andrea had been pacing around the room for the past 3 hours and still had absolutely no idea as to how she was going to be rescuing Daryl. Every time a scenario played through her head it ended with both of them dead. _

_She sat down and started toying around with her gun. 'Think Dammit!' She was getting really frustrated and she watched the sun begin to rise. She hadn't slept in two days…and she guessed she wasn't going to be getting any sleep tonight regardless of how things played out._

_Andrea looked out her window and saw that the street was empty so she headed outside. She walked towards the bunker and counted how many steps were between it and the closest exit. The Arena was at the end of the street near the west gate. The Bunker was on the other side of the street and heavily guarded. Best bet was to retrieve Daryl and get to that west gate. But there was no way that they could get it open without raising an alarm. They could climb the gate and jump over…but again, there were at least three people standing guard at each gate. Someone was going to have to open the gate for them. _

_No one here would help her with this plan, they all thought Daryl was a terrorist, and she wouldn't be able to convince anyone otherwise…despite the fact that she was a lawyer in a past life. This new world wasn't innocent until proven guilty. It was kill or be killed._

_And she had chosen her side. _

_A thought suddenly dawned on her, as to how they were going to sneak out of this place. They would have to wait til sundown so they wouldn't be easy to track. They risked stumbling across more walkers at night but that was a risk they were going to have to take._

_Finally Andrea had a grasp on what to do. _

_For the next 12 hours Andrea went around and learned all the guards shift times at the bunker. Luckily Haley was going to be rotating with Caesar around 6pm. Each person with an hour long shift, Haley would be there until the sun set. It would be then that the plan would unfold. _

* * *

_Andrea watched as Caesar left the bunker, Haley headed in earlier _

"_Hi," Andrea greeted approaching with her hands in her pockets._

"_More biters?" Haley asked almost hopefully._

"_not that I saw…I was actually wondering if I could take your shift for you. I'm up next but I want to make it to the Arena for the execution."_

"_Sureee…but I thought Shupert was up after me."_

"_He was, but the Governor needed to switch people around a little bit for tonight."_

"_Makes sense." Haley nodded, "Allright take care."_

_Andrea sighed, 'can't believe she bought that…again'. _

_After a minute or two Andrea stepped back into Daryl's cell and tossed her gun onto the table. It clattered on the metal and echoed throughout the room. She walked behind him and unlocked the cuffs on his hands. She watched his shoulders relax, and heard a subtle groan escape his mouth as he brought his wrists around to his face. There was a blatant raw red line that circled his wrists. He also had slashes on his forearms as if someone had cut him with a knife. Blood covered his face and he looked miserable._

"_I'm gonna kill that Bastard," he muttered before standing up. He turned to look at her, "thank you."_

_Andrea just nodded, "Hit me."_

_Daryl looked dumb struck, "w-what?"_

"_We're never gonna make it out without being spotted. It's still daylight outside and you're supposed to be executed at nightfall…so we have to act now!"_

"_What exactly do you have in mind?" Daryl asked._

"_I came in here to talk to you; you picked your cuffs, took me by surprise, took my gun, and use me as leverage to get out of this place."_

"_Come on Blondie, you realize how stupid this sounds?" _

"_I don't see a whole lot of other options right now…do you?" _

_Daryl opened his mouth to protest, but couldn't think of any other way out of this whole he had dug himself. _

_Andrea reached up and let her hair down. "Make it look believable."_

"_Andre-"_

"_I am not gonna let him kill you, he has taken too much away from me…I won't let you become one of them, okay?"_

_Daryl nodded in understanding._

"_I'm sorry," he told her before drawing his arm back and backhanding her across the cheek._

* * *

The gate opened and Daryl slowly stepped back, still using Andrea as a shield as he exited Woodbury. A guard took a step back, "That's close enough!" Daryl shouted shoving the gun further into Andrea's head.

The guard stood back reluctantly.

"Now shut that gate!"

They complied with his orders and Daryl and Andrea kept creeping back until they were within the tree line. Daryl released his hold on her, and she took a deep breath. "Nice job Blondie," he said handing her a second pistol, "was worried that wasn't going to work out."

"We're not out of the woods yet, D." Andrea admitted taking the gun, "let's get out of here before they change their mind…or walkers show up."

She took the lead and started to weave through the trees that surrounded them.

"We need to head to the highway," Daryl told her, "once there…I'll take you back to the prison. We need to get their sooner rather than later."

"Why?" Andrea asked.

"Cause Rick is probably gonna try to storm that place again. He doesn't leave nobody behind. I ain't gonna have him risking his life to break into an empty cell."

"Crap, didn't think about that," Andrea cursed silently.

"Well, I'm glad it was you…they were probably gonna kill me before Rick even got there."

"Highways gonna have packs of Walkers,"

"We don't really have a choice right now."

"Not to mention Philip isn't going to let us get very far."

"As long as he thinks I'm keepin' you hostage…we should be fine." Daryl told her, "plus…I can also use you to get Merle back…and my crossbow."

Andrea laughed, "Of all things, you're worried about your damn crossbow?"

"What? I feel naked without it."

Andrea laughed.

"Something funny, Blondie?"

"No, no…it's just-"

"Just what?"

"You're different." Andrea told him. "Less of an asshole."

Daryl shrugged not answering. They heard a twig snap in the distance, and they both turned guns drawn towards the source of the sound.

A mini heard of about ten walkers was passing through and had spotted them.

"Oh shit," Daryl said reaching for Andrea, "Run!"

* * *

**Let me know what you think...as always review.**

**P.S. as for right now Andrea and Daryl are going to just have a friendly bickering relationship. It may evolve into something else...never know...keep reading to find out.**

**Daryl's nickname for Andrea=Blondie**

**Andrea's nickname for Daryl= D.**


	3. Kiss my eyes and lay me to sleep

**Hi everyone. How's it going? Good? Great, here is my latest chapter. But before we begin, i would just like to have a word with some unnamed people.**

**I know that people have a problem with Andrea in the show (believe me I'm one of them), but this is a fanfic. So I would appreciate it if people would stop bitching and complaining about how they hate Andrea in their reviews, I don't care if you don't like her, I don't care about your reasoning. I said from the get go that this is a 'redeeming' fic for Andrea. and quite frankly it pisses me off. IF YOU WANT TO COMPLAIN ABOUT ANDREA TAKE IT SOMEPLACE ELSE!**

**Thank you, my rant is done...enjoy :)**

* * *

"There's too many of them Daryl!" Andrea shouted as the Walkers approached them on both sides. Daryl gazed around at his surroundings, it was too damn dark, "this way!"

He grabbed her wrist and weaved her through the waves of trees. He slashed at the walkers ahead of him clearing the path. After running for a good 15 minutes, they reached the highway. Daryl spotted several random walkers that perked up after smelling fresh meat approaching. He spotted a billboard sign 100 yards down, "time to go." Any walkers that got in their way were knocked aside, there was no time to stab or shoot every walker in the head. They finally reached the base of the sign and he spotted a ladder that was dangling about 10 feet up in the air.

"Give me your foot," he ordered. She turned and saw him bent over, his hands were linked together giving her room to place her foot in them. She did so immediately and stepped up and grabbed on to the ladder and used her strength to pull herself up until her legs reached the bottom rung. She glanced down and saw Daryl looking for a way up. Andrea slid her legs through the space at the bottom of the ladder and fell back, feeling like she was back on gymnastics team. "Grab on" She said reaching out her hand for him.

He glanced up and grappled on to her arm, surprised at how strong she was to support his weight with one arm. He saw her put her other hand forward and he grabbed the other one balancing out his weight, he winced as she squeezed onto her right hand, but his adrenaline kicked in and pushed away the pain. He felt something brush against his leg and he glanced down to see a walker trying to gnaw at his ankle. "Shit!" he cursed as he began to kick his legs.

"Okay that is really not helping me right now!" Andrea shouted as they swayed to and fro.

"Shut it Blondie!" He yelled, "Trying not to let the geeks take a bite out of me."

"Just try to climb up and reach the first step,"

"Your legs are kind of in the way," he said pulling himself up slightly.

"Well put your hand between my legs…" she paused at how awful that sounded. "And get your head out of the gutter D," she sighed as he hoisted himself farther up. She felt his weight loosen up and realized he had reached the base of the ladder. "You up?"

"Yeah," he replied gruffly, "need help?"

"I got this," she said as she did a sit up and grabbed on to one of the rungs of the ladder and pulled her legs back through. She followed Daryl up to the top of the Ladder and stepped up onto the floor of the billboard. "I am going to be sore in the morning." She sighed as she sat down.

Daryl glanced over the edge of the hand railing and saw 2 dozen walkers reaching up to the ladder in vain. "Tell me about it."

"You weren't the one supporting a 200 pound male and letting him climb all over you." She countered as he sat down beside her.

Daryl rolled his eyes at her. "Why did I risk my life to save you, again?"

"Hey, I'm the one who risked my skin to get your ass out of there, remember?"

Daryl opened his mouth to say something but fell short.

"I rest my case," she sighed. "How did you guys even find this place?"

"That black girl with the sword," Daryl told her.

"She has a name Daryl," Andrea reprimanded, "Michonne."

"What the hell kind of a name is that?"

Andrea glared at him.

"What?"

Andrea just shook her head, "So how is the group doing?"

"Uhh…we were kind of going house to house for 8 months." He told her, "About a month ago we came across a prison, so we went in and cleared it out."

"And now Phil is headed there to kill the group?"

Daryl nodded, "we have to get back there tomorrow, and we leave at sunrise so you might want to get some sleep."

"I'm the farthest thing away from tired, D." Andrea laughed, "so…um who's made it this far?"

"We had everyone for a while…but we recently lost T-dog and Lori."

Andrea looked down in sorrow, "Lori's baby?"

"Little Ass-Kicker?" he smiled, "she's fine."

"Little Ass-Kicker?" Andrea asked, "Do I even want to know?"

"Real names Judith."

Andrea nodded, "how's Shane."

Daryl looked at her and ruffled his brow, "He's dead, he went down the night of the farm…I thought you knew."

Andrea nodded and looked down; she had always thought that Shane was the survivor of the group. The one who would out live the rest of them...except maybe Daryl.

"How'd it happen?" She inquired.

"Shane had fallen off the wagon a few weeks before we got to the farm, and since Rick showed up in Atlanta he just got worse. Felt like Rick was stealing Lori and the kid back." Daryl explained, "He attacked Rick. The way the sheriff saw it was 'kill or be killed' so he did what he had to do."

Andrea shook her head in disbelief. First Shane, now the Governor…she was starting to see a pattern in the men she hooked up with. Who'd be next, Merle?

"You okay?" Daryl asked.

Andrea sniffed, "not really, no."

"Listen, uh…I'm not good with the whole 'touchy feely' thing…but if you need to talk about it-"

"I slept with him," Andrea cut him off.

"Who Shane?" Daryl asked.

"Ha, well him too…I was talking about the Governor." She sobbed. She put her head into her hands and wept. "I thought I found a safe haven, a place where I could stop running, but no…"

Andrea wiped at her eyes and sniffed before continuing, "and then there's Phil, he's nice, he's charming, he's sweet…but it's all a façade. A mask he wears to trick those around him. He tried to kill Michonne the only real friend I've had, he did those things to Maggie and Glenn, and then he tries to publically execute you. And I was oblivious about all of it"

Andrea bowed her head back down and Daryl scooted in closer to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She leaned into Daryl and sobbed into his chest. "I hate him, I hate him…I hate him!"

"uhhh…so do I." Daryl offered as he rubbed her shoulder. "Andrea it wasn't your fault. It seems like this guy, the Mayor or whatever the hell he goes by, he's a liar and he tricked you just like everyone else in that god forsaken town. You wanted to see the best in him because you were tired of running. I don't blame you for that."

"Thanks D."

"No problem Blondie."

After a while Andrea finally calmed down and fell asleep in Daryl's arms.

* * *

Andrea woke up to the sound of birds chirping and felt the bright rays of the morning sun hit her eyelids. She squinted before reaching up with her left hand and rubbing her face in an attempt to wake up.

She realized she was curled up at Daryl's side, he had fallen asleep sitting up and his head was drooped down. She felt his chest rise and fall as he breathed. Smiling slightly to herself she sat up and stretched her arms out. She stood up on the creaky metal crate floor of the billboard. She peered over the edge, and sure enough, all the walkers had wandered away during the night.

She reached down, picked up her gun and tucked it safely away in her leg holster.

"Daryl?" She called trying to wake him up.

"D?" She poked him in the shoulder, he lifted his hand and absent mindedly swatted it away.

She poked him again, and finally his eyelids fluttered open. He awoke to her face a mere foot away from him.

"Goddamn woman!" he said startled, "gonna give me a damn heartattack."

"Sorry, you're such a heavy sleeper." she laughed holding out her hand to him, "come on."

Daryl put his hand and hers and immediately regretted it, "son of a bitch!" he cursed smashing his free hand into the metal of the billboard making it rattle. His left hand went to his right nursing it.

"What happened?" Andrea asked alarmed.

"Don't worry about it," Daryl said offensively.

"Tell me," she urged.

"Just back off!" he shouted.

Andrea folded her arms, popped a hip out and just stared at him. His eyes met hers...and a few seconds later he gave up and sighed in defeat.

"See for yourself," he opened his hand and held it out, "just be careful."

Andrea nodded before taking his rough, calloused hand in both of hers. She saw it immediately. His pointer and middle finger were both black and blue, and severely swollen. They had been broken.

"What did he do to you?" she looked on in horror as he snapped them back into place.

Daryl just shrugged as he removed a bandana from his back pocket and tied it around his hand, "it's in the past. No need to dwell on it Blondie."

"Daryl, you can't just walk away from this."

"Watch me," he said before climbing down the ladder.

* * *

They walked in silence for over an hour before Andrea broke the ice. "can you please just talk to me?"

"you gonna bring up my hand?"

"yes,"

"then nope."

"I just feel like this is all my fault,"

"Goddamn woman!" Daryl said finally stopping in his tracks and turning to her, "How many times do i have to say it before it sinks through that thick skull of yours?"

Andrea just looked at him.

"This wasn't your fault!" he shouted.

"Michonne tried to warn me about him, and I flat out ignored her." she admitted.

Daryl pinched the bridge of his nose. "I feel like I'm just going in circles with you."

"How is she ever going to forgive me?" Andrea asked.

"If she's really your friend she will."

Andrea didn't look satisfied.

"For a time I blamed Rick and T-dog for losing Merle," Daryl told her, "I was an arrogant asshole, but after a while I accepted the fact that it wasn't their fault...it was ultimately my brothers."

"Friends forgive friends," Daryl assured her. "And she will forgive you."

* * *

After another hour or two of walking Daryl heard Andrea's stomach growl.

He stopped and turned to her, "I heard that,"

"Didn't eat last night or this morning," she admitted.

"Come on," he said walking off the highway road, "i saw a stream flow through this way...see if we can catch a fish or something."

"I believe that's my specialty D." She said following him.

"I don't see your fishing rod,"

"I don't see your crossbow," she countered.

"I'm a hunter...I improvise." He said as they reached a relatively large stream. "Go ahead and start a fire," he tossed her a small red lighter.

She nodded and headed off to find some small twigs and dried leaves. She paused just as she saw Daryl peel his leather angel-winged jacket and sleeveless brown undershirt. She saw several tattoos decorated his back and arms.

"Nice tats," she commented dumping a small pile on the ground, she sat on a large log and got to work on the fire.

"Went through a phase when I was a teenager," he explained as he waded into the water, he had a large stick in hand as if he was going to attempt to spear the fish.

After a good 20 minutes Daryl had caught three small fish and plopped them down at Andrea's feet. She looked up and saw he put his shirt and jacket back on but left it unbuttoned.

"I thought you said we had to hurry back to the prison," she brought up.

"I've been thinking, Rick has to head back to camp to restock on ammo before he storms Woodbury again. If we're lucky, we'll beat him back."

"Are you going to go back...for Merle?" She asked.

"I don't know." he said sitting down across from her. "He's my brother, I can't just leave him there to rot...and let the Governor do God knows what to him."

Daryl sighed, "Glenn told me that Merle had beaten him to a bloody pulp...and I believe him. But still, Merle's blood."

"So you save him, and bring him back to the prison with you?"

"That's gonna go over real well," Daryl laughed, "'Hey Glenn, I know my brother tried to kill you and your girlfriend, but he's your new bunkmate'."

"So what's your plan?"

"I'll cross that bridge when I get to it."

"If you do go back...I want to come with you guys," She told him.

"I would tell you no, but you'll probably just come along any way."

Andrea nodded in agreement.

"Just one thing...the Governor, he's mine."

"Get in line, Blondie." Daryl smirked before dousing the fire and getting on their way.

* * *

**End of chapter 3. Please remember to review. Any questions, suggestions...just let me know!**


	4. Keep Friends Close, and Enemies Closer

**Hi guys, sorry for the wait. Just finished finals. I am now on break and will have plenty of time to write and finish this story. At the rate I'm going, it will probably be about 10 chapters long. Once again thank you for all the reviews, alerts, and hits. I appreciate everyone taking the time to let me know what you think. It gives me incentive to keep writing. **

**In all honesty, this chapter is a little boring cause it's all about Rick coming back to the prison without Daryl and figuring out what to do and how to get him back. But it had to be done, I also had Rick meet Tyreese who _hint hint_ will have a huge roll in the second half of the story. So here you have it...chapter 4.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Rick stormed into the prison with Maggie and Glenn following closely behind him. Michonne kept her distance from them as she followed them through the labyrinth of cellblocks. Not a word had been spoken since they decided to pack up and leave Woodbury after Daryl had failed to meet up with them.

In his rage Rick forcefully kicked one of the metal doors open with the sole of his foot. It made a very loud rattling sound that made Glenn and Maggie jump even though they had braced themselves for it.

"Rick, we're gonna go back for him. We're gonna restock on ammo and get Daryl the hell out of there." Glenn said finally breaking the silence.

"It's been 18 hours; he's most likely dead by now." Rick said through gritted teeth.

"We don't know that," Maggie tried.

"We can't just give up on him-"

"Daryl would kill me if any one of you died so he could live. He wouldn't stand for that." Rick yelled as he pointed his hand to signify that Daryl was still out there, and that they had failed their redneck tracker.

"So that's it then?" Glenn said with anger in his voice as he got ticked off. His anger wasn't directed at Rick or Maggie but at the direness of the situation, "we just give up on him?"

"I didn't say that," Rick looked up, "I just need to come up with a plan."

Rick began to rub his forehead as he began to pace around the perch. Michonne broke her streak of silence by offering her assistance. "I can help you."

"Really," Rick scoffed, "This is all your fault, if you hadn't run off Daryl wouldn't have had to cover us on his own; he would never have gotten ambushed. And he most definitely wouldn't be in the hands of a sociopath."

"I'm sorry you lost your friend, I am. But I got you there before; I can get you there again."

"Hell of a lot of good it did us the first time," Rick seethed before walking off.

Glenn and Maggie followed but Michonne chose to stay back. Michonne sighed having felt that she screwed up royally. She should've killed the Governor when she had the chance. That would've crippled the whole town. Without a symbol of authority to look to, Woodbury would collapse. But nevertheless, the Governor survived and he was looking to storm this place…with a vengeance.

And she'd be damned before she let that happen.

She had looked into the eyes of the people here, and saw a light at the end of the tunnel. Sure, they didn't trust her, not that she blamed them…this was the end of days after all. But they had honor and principle. And they were gonna need all the help they could get if they were gonna hold down the fort. There was only one thing she knew for sure…

…she would not hesitate to kill again.

* * *

Rick walked into their designated cell block and began pacing back and forth as he pinched the bridge of his nose, Glenn and Maggie had picked up their bags and turned around. They were gonna rush into town while it was still light out, and hit up a few convenience stores in hopes of finding ammunition. Rick tried to talk them out of it, seeing as how their last excursion had gone. Maggie insisted on it though, Daryl had risked his life to save her…so she would risk her life to save him. After much arguing and rising of voices Rick agreed and they got on their way.

Rick remained behind and begun brainstorming ways to get Daryl back. He had to think of something…and he had to think of it fast. Daryl wouldn't survive much longer…if he was even alive at all.

'Goddamn you Daryl, why do you have to be so damn stubborn?' Rick asked himself, 'if you had listened to me for once, you wouldn't be in this shithole'.

Rick stopped and leaned against the concrete wall and slammed his palm into the wall. He stood motionless for what seemed like hours before he heard the door creak open. He turned and saw Carl standing in the threshold with his gun in hand.

"Dad, we've got a problem."

Rick sighed; of course there was a problem. There was always a problem.

Carl led them to cell block B. He had put the four strangers in the cell. This way they'd be safe, but not a threat either. Rick saw two African Americans pacing around the cell, and two Caucasians who were sitting on one of the bunks and holding each other as if they were grieving.

"Are you going to let us out yet?" The only female of the group asked.

"I haven't decided yet," Rick answered as he put his hands on his hips.

"I don't know how they got in," Carl whispered quietly so only Rick could hear. Rick nodded to his son and then opened the door.

"Who's in charge here?" Rick asked.

A burly, muscular man approached. He had on a black wife beater and a beanie hat. "I'm Tyreese." He greeted. "This is my sister Sasha. That's Allan and his son Ben."

Sasha had her arms crossed and looked utterly pissed, Allan looked up briefly, and Ben just stared at the ground.

"I'm sorry that we locked you in here," Rick apologized, "we've had some problems with outsiders breaking in and causing havoc."

"We don't want any trouble," Tyreese told him, "we just needed a place to rest. One in our group was bitten."

Rick looked at the four of them.

"We already put her down," Tyreese told him.

Rick just nodded thinking about Lori, T-dog, and Oscar. "I'm sorry that happened to you, we've recently lost three in our group."

Tyreese just nodded his head.

Rick looked into Tyreese's eyes and made up his mind. He unlocked the cell and held the door open for him.

"This way," Rick nodded, "I'm gonna move you somewhere so you won't be so isolated, I'm gonna need to hold your guns and weapons though."

Tyreese nodded, "we appreciate that. We've been running for so long…it'll be nice to just sit down for a while and catch our breath."

Tyreese then pulled a large hammer with blood stained on the head. God only knows how many walkers had been taken out by his favorite weapon.

Rick nodded again and took the hammer in appreciation. He then turned to Sasha who hesitated before handing over a butcher's knife.

"I don't like this," she mumbled inaudibly to Tyreese.

"We don't have a choice right now," Tyreese told her.

She grumbled before exiting the cell. Ben and Allan followed suit before following Carl. Rick stayed in the back watching the group. Tyreese walked alongside Rick.

"The woman we lost…that was Allan's wife, and Ben's mom." He explained. "It's been the hardest on them. Ben had an identical twin named Billy…he passed about a month ago."

Rick nodded. "I'm sorry for your loss."

Tyreese nodded.

"Just so we get something clear…this isn't permanent." Rick told Tyreese, "Just til you get back on your feet. We'll provide you with plenty of food and ammunition, but I trust you'll be on your way afterwards."

"Just say the word," Tyreese affirmed.

* * *

Carol came storming down the watch tower with her assault rifle drawn over her shoulder. She saw Glenn, Maggie, and Rick come back about an hour ago…but Daryl was not with them. She had assumed that he had gone hunting or something along those lines…but it was getting dark out, and he wouldn't risk his life after dark.

She cursed herself, saying it was probably nothing…but nevertheless she was going to talk to Rick to make sure everything was okay.

"Aww come on now Carly-" Axel tried as he followed her down the stairs.

"CAROL!" She corrected in a ticked off tone.

"Right right, Carol…" Axel rubbed his hand through his mangy hair, "I don't see any reason to you know…get upset. Your friend Daryl is a bad ass mother fuc-"

"will you stop talking for two minutes," Carol interrupted, "I have a bad feeling about this, and I need to talk to Rick. Can you stay here and guard the gate?"

"Allrighty, I guess I can do that," Axel said as he crossed his arms, 'I'm sure everything's gonna be just fine though…you follow me?"

Carol just rolled her eyes before entering the prison.

She got to the security room when she saw Carl standing with three complete strangers.

"Hi Carl," she greeted in slight confusion, "where's your dad?"

Carl pointed to the door on the left which led to the perch. Carol nodded and went to the door in search of Rick.

She closed the door and heard voices coming from up the stairs. It was Rick's and an unknown deep male voice.

She cautiously went up the stairs to find Rick leaning against the wall and a buff man sitting in the metal chair. He had his arms rested on his knees as if he had run a marathon, and was in desperate need of sleep.

Rick looked up as he noted her presence, "Carol this is Tyreese…Tyreese, Carol."

He introduced the two, and Carol awkwardly went to shake his hand before she realized what she was doing.

"Hi," she smiled. He raised an eyebrow at her before returning the gesture. He obviously had not expected this kind of etiquette given the current state of the world.

"Tyreese and his group are gonna be staying with us for a while so they can get back on their feet. Would you mind showing him around?" Rick asked.

"Sure," Carol nodded, "but I actually needed to talk to you…in private if that's okay."

She looked to Tyreese. Tyreese nodded and exited the room and went back down to where the rest of his group was located.

When Carol heard the door close she turned to Rick and pursed her lip, "Where's Daryl?"

Rick sighed and looked down at his feet. He took a deep breath before filling her in on the situation. "He didn't make it out."

Carol just blinked as she tried to process what Rick had just told her, "I'm sorry what?"

"We successfully infiltrated that town and got Glenn and Maggie out," he paused briefly before continuing, "we were ambushed on the way out. Oscar was gunned down, and Daryl got captured."

Carol let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. The strap of her rifle slid down her shoulder and it fell to the ground with a clunk. She lost her footing and crashed against the wall behind her.

Rick watched as tears began to sprout in her eyes, but she kept herself composed.

"So what now?" she asked as she wiped her nose.

"I'm headed back out tomorrow with Glenn and Maggie to bust him out."

"Would he even be alive?" Carol asked trying to be honest with herself that there was a very real possibility that Daryl had been killed.

Rick sighed again, "I don't know. But I'm not gonna just feed him to the dogs. I won't let him die like that."

There was a long silence as Carol just nodded and crossed her arms. She cared deeply for Daryl, they had a special connection and they had bonded immensely over the past 9 months. They both suffered abuse by the people they loved during their lives. And although Daryl didn't talk about it, he had implied on several occasions that his father had made his childhood a living hell.

And there was that nasty looking scar on his chest. The one that ran from his right shoulder all the way down to his left pec.

Even though they were very different, Daryl and Carol had a deep relationship that no one in the group could deny. It was never romantic in any way, but they held each other up…and looked after the other both physically and mentally. Like last week; Daryl had come searching for her after she had barricaded herself in that cell for 3 days. He had found her alive and kicking and reunited her with the group. That was why she loved Daryl Dixon, that was why she had to do something to help him.

"I want to come with you," Carol admitted to Rick breaking their silence.

Rick immediately shook his head, "I know you do Carol, I know you do. But I need you to stay here and look after Tyreese and his group. I trust him, but I'm not convinced about the other three. Just keep an eye on them; their weapons are locked in my cell so as of now their empty handed but don't let your guard down."

Carol nodded before picking her gun back up and heading out the door, "Just bring Daryl home."

Rick nodded, "I'm going to do everything in my power to ensure that happens."

"I know you will." Carol smiled slightly before exiting the room.

* * *

That night Rick got no sleep. Too much had happened in the last few weeks, and the stress was eating at him. His wife had passed, his daughter was born, and now his best friend was MIA. He sighed as he rolled onto his side and stared at the cold concrete wall.

He wondered if he should be so trusting with Tyreese and his group. He hardly knew them, and the last person he tried to help ended up killing T-dog and Lori. Even though he had adapted to this new lifestyle of 'kill or be killed', part of his past life still kept through. As a police officer it was your job to protect people who couldn't protect themselves. His thoughts wondered to Shane.

He had hallucinated Shane in Woodbury, and because of that Oscar got shot. He slipped up and begun to worry if he was losing his mind. Yes, things had been awful after Lori died. His biggest regret was not getting to say goodbye to her. And saying goodbye into a telephone didn't count. His wife died thinking that he hated her. But that was never the case, yes he was hurt and remained bitter, but she always remained as half his strength. His biggest regret was not telling her that, not getting to hold her one last time, and not telling her he loved her.

He now saw Lori through his daughter Judith's eyes. She looked like a spitting image of her mother. He had hopes of being able to tell out her true parentage by her looks. But she looked like neither him nor Shane. But at the end of the day it didn't matter. Judith was his daughter and he loved her.

Everyone in the group cared for Judith…every last one of them. Daryl had really stepped up to the plate and ultimately saved his daughters life by retrieving formula. He had even brought back a few stuffed animals and dolls for her to play with. Daryl might have been the toughest son of a bitch he'd ever met, but on the inside of that rough exterior was a warm nurturing caregiver. He would've made a great father despite the insistence that Daryl had never wanted kids…even before the apocalypse.

Right now getting Daryl back was all that mattered to Rick. He refused to think for even a second that he still wasn't alive. That Governor guy was brutal from what Michonne had told him, he would want information from Daryl…and if it came to that, Daryl might just wish that he was dead.

One way or another, the clock was ticking. And the time window they had to break him out was rapidly growing thin.

* * *

"Everyone remember the plan?" Rick asked as himself, Glenn, Maggie, and Michonne suited up.

"Sneak in at nightfall with our silencers on," Glenn began and turned to Maggie.

"Take down the guards on that wall and shoot to kill. More will pile up and we smoke 'em out in groups." Maggie said as she put the smoke grenades in her backpack.

"There should only be about 20 guards total, so if we play this out right…we should have a clear shot at getting in." Michonne said quietly.

Rick just nodded and turned to Glenn."You ready?"

Glenn nodded as he cocked his gun. Rick then turned to Maggie who just nodded. Finally he turned to Michonne, "one wrong move-"

"I don't make the same mistake twice." She hissed to Rick. "You have my word."

Rick just nodded. "We'll get there with plenty of daylight left…but we don't move in til nightfall. We're gonna need the cover-"

Rick was cut off as he heard a multitude of shots ring out in the distance. "What the hell is going on?"

The four of them sprinted out across the yard to see two figures from behind the tree line taking down a mini herd of walkers.

"I've had enough visitors for one day; Next person who crosses me gets a bullet in the ass." Rick cursed as he pulled out his colt python revolver.

By the time that the four of them reached the outside gate, the shots had ceased and all was quiet on the western front. Rick stared out at the two figures that had their guns raised and pointed at the walkers that laid in piles scattered around them. One of the figures lowered their weapon and spoke in a raspy all too familiar voice. "Long time no see, Sheriff."

Rick jaw dropped as he saw Daryl step out of the woods with a female beside him. Rick's eyes focused on the familiar looking female, and after two seconds he realized that the blonde beside Daryl was none other than Andrea who was long thought to be dead. They were both panting as they reached the metal gate. "You gonna let us in or what?"

* * *

**Have I said how much i love reviews?**


	5. I'm Coming Home

**Hello everyone! Congrats we survived the apocalypse...in celebration, here's a new chapter of 'Loyalties'...enjoy.**

**Once again a thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review...you know who you are.**

* * *

Rick swore his eyeballs were going to fall out of their sockets any minute now. He just stared at Daryl, then at Andrea, then back to Daryl.

"Wha-" Rick tried to ask Daryl as he pointed to the woods.

"How?" still nothing, he calmly took a deep breath before speaking again.

"You mind explaining to me how the hell you're here?" Rick yelled finally getting his words across.

"Blondie here arranged a prison break with me." Daryl nodded to Andrea who was looking at everyone except for Michonne. She was avoiding her eyes. Deep down she just knew that Michonne would never forgive her for pointing that gun at her head.

"Get the hell in here!" Rick shouted as he spotted some walkers approaching. He ran to the gate, unlocked it and slid it open so Andrea and Daryl could slip through. Rick relocked it and turned to Daryl and Andrea.

Andrea suddenly found herself embraced by Rick as he enveloped her in a bear hug.

"I'm so happy to see you, Andrea. We all thought you were dead."

"I know," Andrea finally glanced at her friend, "I have Michonne to thank, she's saved my life a thousand times."

Michonne just continued to stare at Andrea, with no emotion in her eyes. She wasn't happy, she wasn't angry, she wasn't bitter…she just didn't care. And in some ways that was worse than holding a grudge.

She didn't have much time to dwell on it though, because Glenn and Maggie stepped forward and each took turns hugging her.

"Come on," Glenn said tugging at Andrea's wrist, "the others are gonna want to see you."

Andrea followed Rick, Glenn, and Maggie across the field while Daryl stayed behind with Michonne.

Michonne turned to Daryl, "she busted you out?"

Daryl just nodded, "risked her neck to save me."

Michonne blinked before turning around to walk to the prison.

"Hey Michelle?"

"Michonne," she corrected,

"Whatever…look I don't exactly understand how you know Blondie, I'm sure we'll all be discussing this later, but-" Daryl looked into her eyes, "whatever happened between you and her, she feels like shit because of it. I wouldn't take it out on her, 'cause she's doing enough of that to herself."

Michonne did a quick head nod before going on her way. Daryl sighed, in a way Michonne reminded him of himself. Introverted, resourceful, reserved, and most of all stubborn. She was the silent leader type, the type who preferred to be on their own…or at least started off feeling that way. Somewhere down the line all of that changed. Daryl didn't know if Michonne was going to forgive Andrea that quickly, but at least she knew…at least she knew.

* * *

"I don't believe it!" Hershel smiled cheerfully behind his beard as he limped forward, tossing his crutches into the wall and hugging Andrea. "We thought for sure you were gone, T-dog had seen you go down."

"Everything that happened that night is such a blur, I remember going to get Carol…and the next thing I know all the cars are driving off."

"We never meant to leave you behind," Rick apologized putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I know, I know," Andrea smiled, "I don't blame you guys, it wasn't any of your faults. The world out there is pure chaos; it's easy to get caught up in the middle of it."

While Daryl watched Hershel, Beth, and Carol take turns embracing Andrea he decided now would be a good time to pull Rick aside.

"A word?"

Rick nodded and they left the cellblock.

"So uh…when me and Blondie showed up this morning…why were you guys all packed up with guns n shit?" Daryl asked.

"We were headed back out," Rick answered having a feeling where this conversation was headed.

"With Glenn's face looking like that?" Daryl raised an eyebrow.

Rick took a deep breath, now was a good a time as any to just spill the beans. "I had to get you back."

"Bull fuckin' shit Rick," Daryl hissed but managed to keep his voice down so others wouldn't hear. "If you guys would've come back, one of your sorry asses would've gotten gunned down; you don't realize how brutal those people are."

Rick ruffled his brow, "What did they do to you Daryl?"

"Don't change the subject," Daryl reprimanded. "My point is…if you did come back and break me out. What if you didn't make it back this time? Huh, how would I look your son in the face and tell him that you wouldn't be coming back?"

"We look after the people in our group Daryl; you should know that better than most."

"Oh believe me Rick, looking after the lot of them is what keeps me going every goddamn day." Daryl smirked, "But here's the thing; let's say you didn't come back for me. Let's say I did in fact die there; now I'd hope the lot of you mourns me for a time being, pay your respects, all that shit…but the point is you'd get over it. I ain't got no family, no one all that particular close with. You, Glenn, even Carol…you would find ways to move on."

Rick just blinked before Daryl continued.

"But if you died and I made it back…what would I tell Carl? Carl and Judith would be left fatherless for the rest of their lives. And that Rick, and that would be on me," Daryl pointed his thumb into his chest to get his point across. "Same goes for Glenn and Maggie. They got each other and Hershel and Beth. They're all family, and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if they died for me."

"Daryl you are a part of this family." Rick tried to reason with the hunter.

"I know…you're more of a brother to me than Merle ever was." Daryl told him, "but I'd be a hell of a lot happier if my death kept the lot of you intact."

Daryl pinched the bridge of his nose…his hand was still killing him; he needed to get some pain meds from Hershel as soon as he was done here. "Look, just promise me one thing…"

"What?" Rick asked knowing damn well what Daryl was gonna ask of him.

"Next time I get stuck in a situation like that…," Daryl paused briefly, "don't come back for me."

"Dar-"

"SWEAR it, Rick…Don' . .Me!"

"I swear." Rick finally said.

* * *

"You're two fingers have been severely fractured at the bottom of the proximal phalanges just above the metacarpals." Hershel explained after inspecting Daryl's hand.

"In English Doc," Daryl reprimanded.

"This area here," Hershel lightly grazed the black and blue patch of skin above Daryl's knuckle, "It's completely shattered…I can give you meds for the pain, but it honestly will never properly heal."

Daryl just nodded, "Good thing I've got eight spare ones,"

Hershel shook his head as Daryl put on a splint from the medical box and rewrapped his hand.

"Out of curiosity, how'd that happen?"

Daryl shuttered silently and closed his eyes as memories came flooding back.

"_You will die today…but when I give the word. And that won't be until I pluck every single scrap of information out of your pathetic head."_

"_Well then you best get started," Daryl taunted the Governor._

_Daryl watched the man nod his head to the people behind him, he cursed as he felt four arms thrust him out of the chair and slam him onto the table face first. Next thing he knew, the cuffs flew off and his hand was forcibly brought forward onto the corner of the metal table. _

_Daryl couldn't see much, but as he grunted and strained against the two men who were holding him down he saw the Governor pull out a small metal rod._

"_Last chance…how many at the prison?" The Governor asked._

"_Go fuck yourself," Daryl spat bracing himself for the immense amount of pain that was about to flood him._

_There was a loud smack, followed by a crack, then a whole lot of screaming. The smack was from the rod, the crack was from his knuckle, and the screaming had of course come from him._

"_How many at the prison?" The Governor repeated calmly._

_Daryl bit his lip and groaned, "You ain't gonna break me."_

"_I'd like to test that theory," The Governor smirked before the rod came crashing down again._

_Daryl's left hand clenched up and began scratching effortlessly on the table, God his hand felt as if barbed wire was under the surface. _

"_Tell me what I want to know!"_

_The Governor was starting to get ticked off, and that gave Daryl strength. Seeing the man lose control fueled him. _

_He felt a fist ball up in his hair, and his head was yanked up quickly. He was left in an awkward stance as his lower body and arms were restrained, but his neck and head were craned up._

"_If you're gonna kill me, than kill me…then go to hell." Daryl hissed to the Governor._

_The Governor loosened his grip on Daryl's head and roughly shoved it forward._

'_Dammit Daryl, don't be such a pussy!' Daryl scolded himself, Andrea was busting him out tonight…and he had to hold it together til then._

Daryl reemerged from the past and focused his gaze to Hershel. "It was dark and I tripped. I think someone stepped on my hand or something."

Hershel nodded deciding not to push Daryl. When he was ready to talk, he would talk. "Just keep an eye on yourself Daryl."

"I always do."

Daryl opened the door and was about to head back to their cell block, but he was stopped when he saw a large, black man standing in the corridor. Daryl's left hand went to his sidearm.

"Who the hell are you?" he asked clutching his gun.

* * *

**So Daryl finally meets Tyreese. I have a feeling these two will be great friends and I've got big plans in store for Tyreese. In fact I've decided that Tyreese/Daryl/Michonne/Rick are gonna form this ultimate badass team of walker slayers. I've even got a slogan for it...**

**Michonne: You'll have my sword...**

**Daryl: And you'll have my crossbow...**

**Tyreese: And my hammer...**

**Rick: We shall be the Fellowship of the Walking Dead**

**(...sorry got a little carried away there...P.S. go and see THE HOBBIT!)**


	6. Never Back Down!

**Hi everyone! Once again thank you to all people who took the time to review. I can not thank you enough for it. Also thanks to all the people who liked my LOTR quote at the end of the last chapter. **

**This chapter answers alot of questions that reviewers have been asking...like when will Andrea and Michonne make up. There's also a lot of Tyreese in this chapter, too. He's part of the badass club now so questions need answered. **

**I can't help but feel that some people in the story are a little out of character...but this is fanfiction after all, so what's the big deal, right?**

**Final thing, I've added a little side plot about Daryl's hand. Basically the Governor broke two of his fingers badly and Hershel says he won't gain full use of them again. So Daryl has to learn how to become left handed. **

**That's all i got to say for now...so enjoy!**

* * *

"Christ how many of you people are there?" The stranger sighed as he put his hands up in surrender.

"Shut up!" Daryl hissed pulling the gun out of his leg holster.

"Uhhh, you asked me who I was…then you tell me to shut up before you let me answer," Tyreese pondered, "isn't that like counter-productive?"

"Do you want a bullet in the ass?" Daryl asked.

"Absolutely not…would hurt like a bitch." Tyreese told Daryl. "Name's Tyreese, me and my group came upon the prison a few days back…Rick said we could stay here for the time being."

"Is that so?"

"Yep," Rick said on cue as he walked into the corridor where Daryl and Tyreese were engaging in their standoff. "Heard you shouting all the way from the cellblock."

"Well I'm terribly sorry 'bout that Rick," Daryl scoffed as he put his gun back in the holster. "Christ, why doesn't anybody keep me in the loop around here?"

"I was about to tell you before you walked off." Rick countered him.

Daryl took in a deep breath hoping it would relieve him of the stress, pain, and frustration that was flowing through his body.

Stress…yes. Frustration…yes. Pain…hell no.

"Fair enough," Daryl nodded before turning to Tyreese, "Sorry 'bout the gun to the face…don't take it personal."

As Daryl left the room Rick smirked and shook his head.

"Who the hell was **that?**" Tyreese asked as the door slammed.

"That would be Daryl Dixon. My right hand man…and closest friend I got around here."

"He's your friend?" Tyreese asked in shock, "is he always so…rash?"

"Unfortunately yeah…and take the gun to the face as a rite of passage. Did it to me three times before he began to trust me."

Rick paused for a moment before turning to Tyreese. "Speaking on the subject of trust. I believe you've earned mine."

Tyreese nodded, "That means a lot to me, and the others as well."

"That being said, I need to update you on a current situation we find ourselves in," Rick admitted to him, "turns out you might not want to stick around for much longer."

"What's going on?" Tyreese asked.

"Have you met Andrea? The blonde?"

"Not personally, saw her earlier when she and Daryl showed up." Tyreese told Rick.

"That's Andrea. She and Daryl showed up this morning out of the blue. I thought Andrea had been dead for 9 months. Turns out she had been staying at a town called Woodbury. A group of people had taken over the town, and barricaded themselves in protecting themselves from the walkers."

Tyreese crossed his arms and nodded trying to keep up.

"These people are led by a guy who calls himself the Governor. Three days ago he kidnapped Glenn and Maggie and tortured them for information about where we were hiding out…"

Rick paused and began to pace around the room, "unfortunately they caved, and now the Governor knows we're hiding out here."

"And he's gonna come locked and loaded," Tyreese guessed and Rick nodded.

"What about Daryl and Andrea?"

Rick went on to explain how him, Daryl, and a few others had infiltrated Woodbury and broke Maggie and Glenn out…but one member was killed, and Daryl was captured.

"Andrea found out Daryl was there, and the two of them broke out. Now we have God knows how long before this Governor approaches us."

"How many people in the town?"

"60 total, about 20 fighters." Rick told him, "and I'm not gonna run; we've worked too hard, and spilled too much blood to just up and leave. If it's a fight they want, then it's a fight they get."

Tyreese just kept nodding.

"So if you don't want to be a part of that, I suggest you leave as quickly as you can." Rick told Tyreese.

"And go where?" Tyreese asked. "Allen just lost his wife, Ben his mother. They're both mourning right now. They feel safe here, I feel safe here...and that hasn't happened in a long time. And one thing I know is that I'd rather take my chances here, than out there."

Rick nodded.

"So if this thing is gonna go down, I'll back you up…all of us will." Tyreese told him sticking out his hand.

Rick shook Tyreese's hand and after a moment he smirked.

"What?" Tyreese asked.

"It's just, this whole time I've been fighting walkers, I'd have never thought that I would have to worry about live human beings more than them."

"Desperate times make people do desperate things." Tyreese told him.

"Fight the dead…fear the living." Rick mumbled.

* * *

The next morning Daryl emptied the box of cheerios into his metal bowl and then poured in a decent amount of milk. He picked up his spoon awkwardly and mixed the cereal and milk around.

He walked over to the stairs and plopped down, he never ate at the table…but remained close enough to be part of a conversation.

At the table sat Glenn, Maggie, Andrea, Hershel, Tyreese, Beth, Carol and Carl. Rick was standing on the opposite side of the room, leaning against the door. Michonne was off in the corner playing with her plate of food. Andrea was holding Judith and rocking her gently while patting her back. Axel, Allen, Sasha, and Ben were sitting at the adjoining table. The whole group was accounted for.

"We're gonna need to make a trip into town soon," Rick said as he watched Andrea care for his daughter. "Running low on formula."

"I'll head out in a few," Daryl volunteered immediately.

"I need you here." Rick shook his head, "I need you healed."

"It's a goddamn broken finger!" Daryl's voice rose slightly, still soft enough so he wouldn't startle Judith.

"It's worse than that Daryl," Hershel agreed with Rick.

"I'll be fine…and whose side are you on anyways?!" Daryl demanded.

"I'm just saying that I think it's risky to send one of our best fighters out there when he's not 100% healthy."

"I keep telling y'all…I'm FINE!" Daryl emphasized.

He shook his head and plunged the spoon into the cereal. Since his pointer and middle finger were broken he had to balance the spoon on his ring and pinky finger. He slowly brought the spoon up to his mouth, but half way there it tumbled out of his hand and clattered to the ground spilling its contents on his shirt. It was quiet for a moment, but after a few seconds Carl burst out laughing.

"Aw hell no!" Daryl shouted slamming his bowl down.

"I hate to say it D, but if you can't eat cereal I don't think you can take down walkers should you come across any." Hershel said reluctantly having just proved his point.

Seeing as this was a battle he couldn't win Daryl crossed his arms and leaned back.

Everyone focused back to their meals, but Glenn who was sitting across from Tyreese began eyeing the new guy. Tyreese caught on after a while and looked up to meet Glenn's inquiring eyes.

"Can I help you?" Tyreese asked.

"Not to sound like a creep or anything, but…do I know you from somewhere?" Glenn asked

"Uh…would you happen to follow football that closely?" Tyreese asked wondering if someone had caught on.

"Holy hell," Glenn exclaimed in shock, "You're Tyreese Caldwell, Running back for the Atlanta Falcons!"

"Second string behind Mike Turner." Tyreese nodded.

Everyone looked up at Tyreese now that the conversation had gotten interesting.

"No kidding?" Rick asked in shock.

Tyreese just nodded to everyone. "The team was heading to Baltimore when it all went down. After the first broadcasts started, I hopped off the bus and came back for my family." He explained before whispering. "Could only save Sasha though."

Everyone fell silent as Tyreese recalled the events that led him here. Carol reached over and tenderly laid a hand on his arm.

Tyreese looked up and smiled at her, after a moment he cleared his throat to change the subject, "so what all did you guys do?"

"Deputy Sheriff," Rick answered.

"Delivery boy," Glenn said with mock enthusiasm.

"Civil rights attorney," Andrea told him.

"Veterinarian." Hershel went.

"School student," Beth followed. Sasha, Carl, and Ben all nodded in agreement.

"What about you?" Tyreese asked Daryl.

Daryl smirked, "I worked in construction for most of the time. Had a second job at a gas station. Not too much to get excited about."

"How'd you learn all that stuff with the crossbow?" Andrea asked only knowing part of the answer.

"Ever since I was a boy, I liked the outdoors…I would just disappear into the wild for days on end. Just felt free out there. When I saved up I bought my crossbow and started hunting…never thought I would use it to hunt people, though." Daryl sighed before taking a sip of water.

"Tell me 'bout it," Rick sighed as he shifted his weight against the door.

Everyone stopped talking and fell silent for several moments. Despite the fact that they'd been living in this walker-infested world for almost a year, they would often time pause for reflection.

Everyone snapped out of it when they heard Judith whimper in Andrea's arms.

"Here," Rick said hopping up and began digging through his knapsack for one of his daughters formula bottles. After he fished it out, he handed it to her. Andrea smiled as she shifted Judith up slightly and put the bottle to her mouth. "We still need to get some formula."

"I'll go," Michonne piped up. She stood up and walked over to Rick. "I know a place about 10 miles east that should be stocked up. Just need a car."

"Take mine," Maggie told her and tossed her the keys.

"I'll be back before dark," Michonne said and walked out the door.

Andrea looked up when she heard Michonne exit the room. She and Michonne hadn't said a word to each other since she showed up, and she had to try to set things straight here and now.

"Carol can you take Judith?" She asked and gently shifted the infant over.

Daryl watched her follow the sword wielder out, nodding to her as she went.

By the time Andrea caught up with her they were outside in the courtyard.

"Mich! Wait up!" Andrea called coming out the door.

Michonne stopped walking but didn't turn around.

"I'm sorry, allright? For everything, you warned me about him, about that place. And I didn't listen. You're my best friend, and I took a strangers word over yours. And I'm sorry for that." Words spilled out of Andrea's mouth so fast she was barely understandable. Michonne however, got the gist of it.

"I should have trusted you…" Andrea whimpered as tears stung her eyes.

"We're good." Michonne said stoically.

"No we're not. Friends trust each other, and I didn't trust you. After all you did for me…I just cast you aside." Andrea went on. "I don't know how you could ever forgive me, just know that I am sorry, and you we're right…about EVERYTHING!"

Michonne took a breath and turned around, "I told you he was bad news."

Andrea nodded, "and I can see that now."

Michonne bit her lip, "It hurt. To see you defend him. It hurt to see you point a gun at my face. It hurt for me to be treated like the bad guy."

Andrea looked down not being able to keep this conversation going on for much longer.

"But…I know you had your reasons." Michonne added, "I haven't always been the most civil person out there. I just stab now, ask questions later."

Andrea smirked ever so slightly.

"I think we both made mistakes out there. The Governor played us both, and now we get to work from there."

"Sounds like a plan," Andrea nodded.

"I just need to know," Michonne added stepping closer, "if this whole standoff does in fact play out…I need to know that you're gonna be able to do what's necessary to keep this group safe."

Andrea nodded firmly, "I'd die for these people."

"As would I, there's something about these people…something warm. And I intend to hold on to that." Michonne bowed. "So we're good."

Andrea smiled as Michonne headed back on her way.

"Just one question though…what made you trust Rick and not the Governor?"

Michonne shrugged, "I followed my gut."

Andrea nodded as Michonne unlocked the gate and drove out and locked back up.

She smiled brightly to herself. This was turning out to be a good day; she turned to head back inside but stopped when she saw Daryl walking down the opposite side of the prison yard.

* * *

Daryl unwrapped his hand to inspect his fractured hand. He winced as he noticed the swelling had not gone down…it was worse. Shades of green, blue, purple, and yellow painted his two fingers. Just the sight of it made him queasy. He pushed those thoughts behind him and started to shake out his hand wondering if it would help circulate the blood faster.

He grabbed the coke can and walked up to the fence; he crunched the aluminum can up and wedged it in between one of the spaces in the fence. After the can was secured he took several steps back til he was about 20 feet away from the can.

Daryl looked at his hand again. He tried to bend his index finger to no avail. He wouldn't even be able to pull the trigger with it. He was gonna have to fire a weapon left-handed. During his inspection, Hershel had told him there was a very real possibility that he wouldn't be able to regain use of his fingers, especially without surgery of any kind available. The reality was setting in that he was going to have to become left-hand dominant.

Come to think of it the only reason he was able to kill the walkers the other day was because he had an adrenaline rush. People had been known to lift cars when that happened. Plus it took a good 2-3 days before the fingers swelled up.

Daryl pulled the gun out of his holster and tested the weight by shifting it around in his non dominant hand. It felt odd and out of place. After a minute he pulled the safety off and aimed it at the fence.

He focused his eyes on the can and after a second he fired his first attempted shot.

Daryl cursed, his left hand flew back from the kickback…not expecting it to be that intense.

"Son of a bitch," he yelled shaking it out.

He shook it off and attempted again…and again…and again.

After his clip ran out Daryl acted out in rage by chucking his gun at the fence in rage (that too failed to hit the marker).

He grunted and began to pace back and forth with his hands crossed behind his head; he stopped when he saw Andrea walking towards him with her hands in her pockets.

"Problem?" She asked, despite witnessing Daryl's tantrum.

"Goddamn hand is useless…" he mumbled before grabbing his bandana and rewrapping it. "And it ain't even healing!"

"Daryl it's been a day…and if you don't wear the splint, it's never going to heal." She berated him.

"Can't do anything…can't hold a gun, can't drive my bike…I can't even eat a goddamn bowl of cereal without looking like a dumbass!"

"D, you need to snap out of it," Andrea concluded, "It's the apocalypse…it could be much worse. Like your brother…he didn't even get to keep his hand."

Daryl winced and subconsciously grabbed his wrist. "Eh, don't remind me."

"As far as I'm concerned you're ten times the man your brother is. If he could find a way to cope with just one hand, I'm sure you can figure something out too."

"What are you? My therapist or something?"

"Don't get your hopes up too quick D." Andrea smiled handing him another clip, "now why don't you try hitting that can again?"

Daryl pulled his trademark half-lip smirk of his and took the clip. He walked to the fence and picked his discarded sidearm back up. He balanced the clip in the palm of his right hand and successfully snapped it into place. He walked back out towards andrea and turned to the fence.

He carefully leveled the gun towards the can in the fence. He took one last breath and held it in place before firing another shot.

Lo and behold when the dust had cleared, he noticed that the can had been forced out of the fence and into the outer layer.

"Booyah!" Daryl shouted as his hands shot up in victory.

"Nice going D!" Andrea cheered.

"I need to practice on some live targets…" Daryl said excitedly as he headed out to the exterior gate. A mini herd of six walkers were clawing helplessly at the gate. Daryl ran over to them and put about five feet between him and the fence. He cocked the gun and began firing at the walkers. It took him nine shots to take down all six…but it was still a vast improvement in such a short amount of time.

"I can do this," he muttered to himself. "I can do this!"

* * *

Later on after Daryl was done shooting targets he met back up with Rick and Glenn to talk about their defensive strategy. Earlier Rick had informed the extended group of the situation and they had taken it better than he thought they would. Everyone agreed that they didn't want to abandon the prison. Questions were immediately raised about what to do with the baby and who all would fight.

"We're gonna have to completely clear out the prison," Rick explained, "I found a set of blueprints in one of the offices and it looks like we're about a third of the way done. Carol, Hershel and Beth are gonna take the baby and hide in the core of the prison…that way if it comes down to it, and Woodbury soldiers burst through our line of defense, the four of them will be safe. We're gonna give Carol both sets of keys. And she'll lock them in."

"Wouldn't it almost work to our advantage if we leave walkers in certain areas…kinda like booby traps?" Glenn asked.

"Too risky," Rick shook his head even though it was a good idea. "We forget we have two enemies here, Woodbury and walkers…I don't want anyone of us to forget which area we left infected."

"Agreed," Daryl nodded. "We might want to make one last supply run, and stock up on as much weapons and ammo as we can. If we come out on top, our gunfire is gonna attract a hell of a lot of walkers."

"Maggie and I are on it," Glenn told him.

"And Michonne's out still," Rick said, "She knows what's going down so I'm sure she'll keep an eye open."

"It just kills me that we don't know how long we have til they get here?" Glenn cursed in frustration.

"I know," Rick told him, "they're probably doing same as us, finding out a strategy…but we have one advantage they don't…this is our land."

Daryl nodded firmly. "I'm ready for some payback for what the sons of bitches have done to this group."

"Join the club," Glenn quirked. His face was still beaten and bruised from his time with the Governor. Daryl winced knowing that his brother was responsible for that.

The three of them walked back into the cell block to find Axel waiting for them.

"What's going on? Where is everybody?" Rick asked him.

"Outside in the courtyard," Axel explained, "That new fella Tyreese. Said he had somethin' he wanted to show us, you follow me?"

The four of them locked up the cell and made their way outside to find the whole group standing around Tyreese who was dragging a duffle bag out of his jeep wrangler. He had to abandon the car when his group had been ambushed by walkers, he went back for it a few hours ago and successfully got it back.

"We've been working too hard…need to settle down have some fun!" Tyreese barked as he slammed the door of his jeep.

"Last time I checked, FUN wasn't an adjective to describe the apocalypse." Andrea sighed.

"Fine, you can sit on the sidelines," Tyreese retorted. He zipped open the blue duffle bag and pulled out a football and some red and yellow strips of plastic.

"Two words…flag football." Tyreese smiled.

* * *

**So excited for next chapter! For those of you who are familiar with the comics, Tyreese was a profesional football player so that's gonna play out next chapter. I could totally see Glenn being the obsessed number 1 fan, too. **

**So, I have a request for all readers out there. The group is going to have an epic game of football next chapter, and i need some badass team names to go with them. Help me out please! I take anonymous reviews too, so don't be shy!**

** Stay tuned!**


	7. Daryl's Weakness

**Wassup y'all?! I'm ALIVE! Yes I know it's been a long time coming…been busy, lot of shit going down (school, wisdom teeth, and a cockapoodle). Hope all y'all are still with me though! And I should now officially note that things are completely AU from the series now. You'll see why towards the end of the chapter. **

**This is kind of a filler chapter…(I thought it was a good idea at the time).**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"Allright…we're gonna have two team captains. Any volunteers?" Tyreese asked.

Carl nudged his dad in the leg and beckoned him to go up. "Allright, I guess I'll be one."

"Fantastic, I'll be the second…now it's time for the draft. Officer Friendly honors yours."

Rick grinned slightly, "I need my wingman, Daryl you're with me."

Daryl nodded before joining Rick's side.

"I'll take Ben," Tyreese smiled pointing to the teenager with the black hair.

"Carl," Rick waved and his son ran up.

Tyreese looked at the group trying to decide who to pick. Glenn was silently praying it would be him. 'Pick me, pick me, please oh please pick me.'

"Glenn," Tyreese finally decided.

"Woohoo!" Glenn cried pumping his fists into the air like a nutjob.

"Maggie," Rick picked.

"Andrea," Tyreese chose.

"Sasha," Rick nodded.

"Beth," Tyreese waved her over.

"Allen," Rick picked his last teammate.

Axel looked around and saw he was standing by himself. "Aw man, why'd I have to be the last picked?"

"Sorry bro," Tyreese apologized, "come on over though. Allright teams are settled, we're gonna be yellow, and Rick's team will be red. Get suited up."

Everyone went to the pile on the ground and pulled up their designated color.

"This has got to be the stupidest thing I've ever been caught doing," Daryl sighed as he tried to fasten the red belt. "And believe me it's a long list."

"Oh stop it, despite what I said before…this might actually be good for us." Andrea smirked. She paused when she saw Daryl failing to loop his belt. "Here,"

Daryl pulled his hand away and Andrea stepped in close and used her petite hands to knot the stubborn belt into place.

Daryl felt extremely awkward at having her tie a belt for him…mainly due to the fact that she was hovering down south.

"There we go," Andrea finished and pulled away pausing at the closeness between her and the redneck. They both blushed slightly and turned away before the other could notice.

"Allright…everyone good to go?" Tyreese asked as he tossed the football from hand to hand.

"Let's get this over with," Daryl sighed heading over to Rick's end of the field.

Carol and Hershel stood on the sidelines as the designated 'referees'. Carol was sitting on one of the metal tables with Judith in a portable rocker beside her.

"Allright, I want a nice clean game…from all of you." Hershel instructed as he limped into the center of the field. He pulled out a quarter from his pant leg. "Tyreese…call heads or tails when I throw the coin in the air."

Tyreese nodded and smiled, "I always wanted to do this."

He watched as Hershel expertly flicked the coin into the air and he decided to call out tails.

The coin clunked into a small patch of grass and Hershel leaned down with his crutches to pick it up.

"Tails it is…Your team wins the kickoff."

Tyreese clapped his hands together, "allright guys bring it in."

Andrea followed Glenn into the huddle. Tyreese began to give out basic moves to people. "Now if we do this right, Andrea should be open for the pass on the left side of the field down that way. If we score right off the bat, they won't know what hit them. Break!"

People began to cover one another. Rick and Tyreese, Daryl and Andrea, Glenn and Maggie, Ben and Sasha, Allen and Axel, and Carl and Beth.

"Hike," Glenn called as Axel snapped the football back, he fake handed off to Tyreese and watched as Andrea sprinted down the field with Daryl neck-and-neck with her. He took a deep breath and threw it as best he could.

"I got it" Andrea shouted as she started running with her head turned and her arms behind her. She caught the ball in midair, but when she spun around she crashed into Daryl and the two of them went crashing to the ground.

"Owww," Daryl moaned when he hit the dirt. Andrea was laying on top of him, head landing on his chest and her hand gripping his bicep for support.

"I got it!"

"Well kudos for you Blondie, now could you roll off? You weigh a goddamn ton!" Daryl joked.

She rolled her eyes before hopping up and holding her hand out to him.

He took her by the hand and hoisted himself up.

"Touchdown!" Hershel shouted pointing his crutch at the make-shift endzone.

"Don't get too excited, it's not even halftime." Daryl said grumpily as he headed back to Rick.

"Nice," Rick said sarcastically.

"Oh shut up," Daryl grumbled, "I grew up hunting, not throwing a football."

* * *

Beth held the football out in front of her before winding it back and punting it down towards Rick's end. Carl ended up catching it and running it down the field. He got half way before Beth caught up with him and gracefully pulled a flag from his belt before he even noticed she was there.

"Second down!" Hershel called.

"Hike!" Rick called as Allen snapped the ball back to the team captain. Rick studied the field and saw Maggie open in the end zone.

"Touchdown!" Hershel called out, "Game's tied."

* * *

The game went on for over an hour as the group kept throwing the football back and forth. The score was too high and eventually they stopped keeping track. All they knew is that everyone managed to get in a touchdown…except for Daryl.

Daryl pursed his lips as the football grazed the tips of his fingers but hovered out of reach. "I hate this game!" he shouted before heading back to Rick.

"No offense but I'm pretty sure Hershel would do better than you." Rick laughed.

"Fourth down!" Hershel called.

"Allright here's something a little easier for you," Rick said giving Daryl the ball to punt.

Daryl wound the football back and kicked it as hard as he could, he cursed as he watched it waver through the air to the side.

"Shit!" Tyreese cursed as they all watched the football fly over the fence and bounce into the surrounding tree line.

"Nice one," Maggie told Daryl.

"I. Don't. Do. Football!" Daryl emphasized.

"Last time I pick you first," Rick joked.

* * *

Everyone stood there defiantly as they waited for someone to make their way to the outer fence to retrieve the football. No one was budging.

"Allright then, who wants to go get it?" Rick asked the group clapping his hands together and immediately turned to Daryl.

"Uh uh, don't look at me…you want to play so much get your own damn football."

"Uhhh, it looks like we don't have to," Hershel pointed to the fence and the group turned to see two people approaching the fence. One of them had the football tucked under their arm.

Andrea focused on the two people and immediately recognized both of them. The one on the left with the football, she had her brunette hair slicked back, and a green ball cap on. Slung over her shoulder was a bow. The one on the right had neatly combed dirty blonde hair; he looked extremely anxious and fidgety as he kept pushing his glasses up his nose and following his friend closely.

"Haley," Andrea cursed as she watched her and Milton approach the fence.

* * *

**There we go…got that chapter out of the way. We are entering the final stretch of the story. But yes, Haley is alive. What is she doing here…with Milton? When will Michonne be back? Will Merle return? Why does Daryl suck at football? (Okay, not gonna answer that one).**

**Once again sorry for the lateness. Next update will be in a few days…got time to make up for.**


End file.
